We Are Old Enough to Remember the Fanfiction.net Heyday

Fanfiction.net used to be your source of all things fandom back in the old days. Starting in 1998, it was the place to get your fanfic on the internet. And it has a catalog of fic from a wide range of fandoms that aren’t necessarily online anymore. 

The origins of modern fan fiction can be traced back to Star Trek and probably even further if we wanted to. But it is something that everyone in fandom is aware of. You either write it, read it, or know someone who does. But Fanficfion.net was one of the first online hubs for all our fanfic needs. 

So why is it slowly dying out now? The platform is not nearly as important as it once was. Sure, fans of those fandoms who didn’t move their fic to other platforms still turn back to the trusted Fanfiction.net to read their stories. But other websites like Archive of Our Own (Ao3) have taken over as the primary source for fanfic. 

The issue seems to be that older fans (those who were reading there before Ao3 began) keep reading stories for their fandoms but if you’re posting new work there for a newer fandom, you may not find success. Not because the site itself is done but because it just is a hub for a different kind of fan.

So is anything wrong with the site?

No, not really. It just isn’t what it used to be for new fandoms. I am sure the Lost fandom can still find love and attention there because it is where I read a lot of my favorite Jack and Kate fanfiction. But the disconnect seems to be with new work on the platform. 

One thing that Fanfiction.net did that really is the opposite of what fan fiction is all about is that the site banned certain work from appearing. It started with authors asking the site to do this (Anne Rice famously being one of them) and it resulted in fans going to other sites to publish work inspired by their favorite creative’s catalog. 

The site also banned fan fiction based on real-life celebrities, which has found a home on Ao3. The shift in power from Fanfiction.net to Ao3 all seems to stem from fandoms changing and what Fanfiction.net would and would not allow on the site. Which includes no NC-17 fic. 

But the site does still operate. There are just a lot more rules there to follow.